Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Slow Cooker Sweet and Sour Chicken

As I mentioned Sunday, Kiddo and I went on a meal prep bonanza. A combination of our crazy evening schedule and my strong desire for some simplicity has driven me into the arms of my Crock Pot.

This bad boy didn't get frozen, since we were having it the next day, so I can't attest to any changes that could take place in the freezer. What I do know is this: We came home to a smelly house, and it was the good kind of smelly.

For the life of me I couldn't figure out where I found this recipe. Honestly. You know this girl gives props. I searched my computer history, retyped some recently used words into Google...no cigar. Then I found it. On the Kraft website. I spent all that time looking for a recipe that someone didn't credit to Kraft?! Pfffft.

You can find the real original here. I actually used their directions below because I like them better than the version I found.

Slow Cooker Sweet and Sour Chicken

1 onion, sliced

1 carrot, sliced

1 stalk
celery, sliced

1-1/2 lb.
boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces

1/3 cup
packed brown sugar

1/3 cup
KRAFT Classic CATALINA Dressing

1/4 cup
lite soy sauce

1 tsp.
grated gingerroot

1 Tbsp.
cornstarch

1 can
(8 oz.) pineapple chunks, drained, liquid reserved

1 each green and red pepper, cut into strips

3 cups
hot rice

PLACE onions, carrots and celery in slow cooker; top with chicken.
MIX sugar, dressing, soy sauce and ginger; pour over chicken. Cover with lid.
COOK on LOW 4 to 5 hours, increasing heat to HIGH for the last 30 min.
STIR cornstarch into reserved pineapple liquid.
Add to slow cooker with pineapple and peppers; stir. Cook, covered, 30
min. or until sauce is thickened. Serve over rice.

I added a little cornstarch and put it
back on low for 30 minutes, but it didn't seem to thicken it much. It
didn't matter, really. While the cornstarch was trying to do that mysterious
thickening thing it usually does, I cooked the rice. I opted for a Trader Joe's
wild rice mix I had on hand...but only because it had the shortest cooking
time. You could probably use any type.

Success! Kiddo doesn't care for cooked onions (along with so many other foods), so I dodged them while dishing his serving up. He ate all of it! That huge, folks.

It was really good. And oh so simple. I literally threw everything in, gave it a stir, popped the pot in the crock and set the timer for 6 hours on low. That's one of the benefits to my new Crock Pot...it switches to warm once the timer is up. With my old 2-setting slow cooker, I had to avoid recipes like this that only need a short amount of time because we are often out of the house for 7-8 hours.

We have yet to eat the other 3 meals we prepped on Sunday, so I'll be posting those successes (or failures) as we try them. Tomorrow we tackle the Mongolian Beef.

P.S. I am raffling offthe camera strap cover of your choice from The Poppy Shoppe. You can enter here.